Llangollen Canal

[jakep]

Has anyone hired a narrowboat on this canal?
Can you recommend a boatyard?
Thank you

[CrapAtCryptics]

A friend of mine did one with a company called Marine Cruises - he seemed quite happy but I cant find, on first search, any reviews online so have a check around.

[jakep]

Thank you CAC

[Togo]

http://www.marinecruises.co.uk/llangollen-canal.htm

[Togo]

Chirk is a great marina. Beautiful canal jake.

[jakep]

Thank you Togo, very helpful

[sddsddean]

Just so you know Jake, the Llangollen is the most popular bit of canal to cruise on in the country, so it gets VERY busy...especially in the summer holidays. I went up a few years ago in late May and it was already getting busy. One of the lock keepers at Grindley Brook staircase locks (a notorious pinch point) told me it was not unusual for a 3 hour hold up in peak season. I'm not trying to put you off, it is beautiful, but just be prepared! Any of the hire bases in the area are good, but I would recommend using one on the Shropshire Union canal or even the Trent & Mersey near Middlewich. This means you can cruise all the way up the canal to Llangollen and all the way back. Another thing to bear in mind is that unlike most canals, the Llangollen has a 'flow'. It picks up water from the Horseshoe Falls on the River Dee (an artificial falls built for the purpose) and feeds it to the Shropshire Union, so it has about a 1-2 mph flow on it, which might not sound like much, but when you are going through bridges and longer narrow sections upstream, you will notice a significant slowing of the boat. In Chirk tunnel I was almost convinced we had grounded we were going so slow!! Hope you have a great time and enjoy the countryside.

[jakep]

Thanks sdean. We'll be going first week of October so shouldn't be too busy.

[sddsddean]

Brilliant! You should have no problems then. You can stay in the marina at Llangollen for 2 days for £6 (at least it was a couple of years ago) and that includes a water and electric point on the end of your jetty.

[Chain_bull]

It's a very pretty canal. Ango Welsh have a boatyard at Trevor, at the end of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. They are a reliable company with very nice boats but aren't cheap). Media URL: http://www.anglowelsh.co.uk/Offers?gclid=COnfzdj7gcwCFVQ_GwodpN0C4Q
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